I never know what to write in these boxes...where do I start? How much detail is too much detail?

When I was little and someone asked what do I want to be when I grow up, I would say I either wanted to be a vet, or a singer. After a brief stint in a girlband age 9 that consisted of one very intimate gig performing to the rest of class 4, it dawned on me that my singing sounded more like a cat that's in need of a vet. So I thought maybe I could be that vet, but alas I hit an obstacle in the realisation that I'm totally squeamish. So that resulted in a major career change.

Travelling: I have drawn out a map of the world and am colouring in each country as I go, and I don't intend to stop until the whole world is blue. I have worked in France (single handedly running a kids' club at the age of 19, looking back, I don't know how that worked out so well!), spent a summer teaching in Thailand, taken small trips here and there within Europe (one of the wonderful liberties of an EU passport - f*** Brexit) as well as visiting family in the USA and Canada. I spent pretty much a year working and travelling in India, with a couple of side trips to Sri Lanka and Nepal, and then another couple of years travelling, working to fund travelling, travelling to new countries to work, and working in countries that I travel. You get the idea. My plan for 2018 is to begin studying my masters in the Netherlands, so I'm getting in some travelling before then by working and Couch Surfing. Not that I'll ever really be 'finished' with travelling, just gotta figure out a way to make it more sustainable as the years go on.

Hobbies: photography, drawing/painting/craft, writing.
I won't pretend that I particularly enjoy exercise, but I do it because I don't want to be unhealthy and die. The forms of exercise that I hate the least are swimming, running, and the gym (with the exception of hiking because nature is awesome). I joined the swim team in university because the social events were really fun. I also used to dance up until a couple of years ago; ballet, Irish, street, and a little bit of salsa because why not.
I started boxing when I returned from India and I love it, as well as the fitness (I know I've done good if I can't walk the next day) I find it incredibly empowering.
Yoga: I have been to four classes that I didn't enjoy, and one that I really loved. In India, which is just as well since it's the birthplace of yoga. And then I finally found one I loved this year right there in my home town, but that was short lived as I'm travelling again now. So I'm always on the lookout for yoga!

You might have sensed that I'm a little bit sarcastic, if I can have a bit of a laugh and a joke with you then I know we've got a friendship going on. And if I don't take the piss out of myself then someone else will do it for me won't they. But I'm also an incredibly loyal, supportive friend (and that extends to strangers - they're only the prequel to a friendship), who would fly to the moon and back for someone who was in need. I have a kind heart and a fierce soul, and I endeavour to eliminate any pain and suffering that I become conscious of in others. I am slowly figuring out who I am, and what I'm doing here, and my tribe is gradually growing. Right now my goal is to make the most of being young, have as many adventures on as many different continents as I can, grab every opportunity that comes my way and hunt down the ones that don't come so easy, make the best of every little thing that happens, and make every single day that I walk on this earth one that was truly worth living. I could go on and on about running with wolves but I'm not so sure how many people will still be awake at this point of my autobiography. Zzzz...

Pourquoi je suis sur Couchsurfing

I am brand new to Couchsurfing, because as with all modern technology I am a few years behind (I mean, today I found out that I can call someone on Facebook!). I have heard a few friends mention it and not paid very much attention. Mainly because I thought it was couchsurfing with a lower case "c"; sleeping on the sofa of a random they met on the street, erm are you insane?! And then I found it was an actual thing, and I thought I'd check it out. Well what a fantastic idea! I took my first solo trip last year (well first solo trip where I didn't set off with a boy and end up alone on a beach in Goa (long story)), so that was the perfect time to give Couchsurfing a go. And I have to say I had the most amazing, positive experiences. Oh and I also want to show my mum that it IS safe and she CAN sleep at night while I'm away.

As cliche as it sounds, and it would be worrying if I was on Couchsurfing if I didn't like meeting new people, but I do, I absolutely love meeting new people. The beauty of travelling is that you meet so many people, some of which you never see again, and others you feel like you've known your whole life. You come home and people just don't get it, they've never left the town, they don't know how to walk into a room and start a conversation about just anything. I want to meet people who think "yes I know exactly what you're talking about".

So yeah, why am I on Couchsurfing? To meet new people, explore new places with people that know about them, and share stories. Believe me I have some.

Morceaux de musique, films et livres

Oh I'm no good at answering these questions...

Sometimes I listen to really cool tunes that I want to blast from the rooftops, and other times I think "oh my god if my headphones fell out right now and anyone heard what I'm listening to then I would want the ground to swallow me up". Don't ask me about genres, I have no clue. But I like most kinds of music (although I know I'm a rock girl at heart). I'm a 90s kid so I love an old school, blast from the past, absolute throwback of a tune. I mainly listen to music now when I'm driving, no favourite station, I flick through them all. It has to be loud and I have to be able to sing along. And I don't care who is next to me at the traffic lights.

I'm terrible with movies, usually if you say "have you seen....?" then I probably haven't. Or I have and I didn't know that's what it was called. But if you put a movie on I will watch it and I'll probably enjoy it. Unless it's horror, I can't watch anything rated 18 because they give me nightmares. And I'm staying in your house so... I would say that I'm a die-hard Disney fan but looking back on some of the classics the sociologist in me notices a LOT of issues with those. Breakfast At Tiffany's is one of my all time faves, they just don't make em' like Audrey anymore. I love the Bridget Jones films, I draw so many parallels between the misdemeanours of her story and me trying to amble through my own daily life. Falling off a ski lift would be a classic example. As for Mark Darcy, mmm. I'm sure there are better, more serious and intellectual examples of films that I like, but right now I'm very tired. I'll come back to this section.

Edit: since travelling and hanging out with all kinds of people with very different tastes, I've come to realise that the best kinds of movies are the ones that you would never normally choose but watch because someone else likes them, and they turn out to be really, really good.

Une aventure extraordinaire que j'ai vécue

Climbed a mountain in the Himalayas.

To some people that won't seem like much, but I arrived in Nepal off the back of a difficult personal journey and I felt like giving up. After a weekend with three incredible, strong, feisty women and a kind soul who offered me a free sleeping bag with the wise words of "now I've given you that, you have no excuse not to trek", I set off up that mountain and I didn't look back. It was hot, it was cold, it was rainy, it was painful, it was gruelling. But I will NEVER forget the feeling of reaching 4100m. I conquered that mountain, I defeated that self-doubt, and now I can achieve anything.

Hitchhiked solo around Taiwan.

Enseignez, apprenez, partagez

This is where the self doubt comes back and I think "oh no I don't have any special skills".

I love photography - if you're great then I can learn from you, if you're not then I can teach you.

I'm no chef, but I can cook food that is edible and on occasion tastes quite nice. I LOVE food so I love creating it. I don't really follow recipes, mainly because if I don't have an ingredient then I skip it out and if I don't have the correct measurements then I guess them - recipe for disaster I know. But I have a basic repertoire of ideas of things that work, and I'm pretty good at adapting that to the ingredients that are available. Go me! I would love to share foods that I traditionally eat back home with other surfers, and learn new dishes from them! Oh this is probably where I should mention that I don't eat meat... so far I've always managed to learn the local language for that and it generally hasn't been a problem. I've also found it amazing how open hosts have been to this as I do worry about it putting people off.

I have been learning French since I was 5. So i'm fluent you ask? Ah, non. Mais je voudrais améliore si tu peux m'aider s'il te plaît? I love to learn new languages, but the more and more countries I visit I realise I'm never going to grasp the fluency of them all. But if you can teach me some basics to help me get by during my stay then that would be great, and if you want to practice your English then I'm pretty fluent (which I guess is the least you'd expect from an English person...)

I love reading, but I would be lying if I professed to constantly having my head stuck in a book. I mainly sit down to read and then I see/hear the news and I get all heated about issues and I decide I need to get out there and change the world, but then my dinner is ready and I put my book down and go back to it like a week later. But I LIKE reading and I very much intend to read more, so does that count? So for now I can tell you which books I heard are good and which ones have nice covers. Anyway, it's something to share and talk about isn't it... Edit: I realised that I'm talking about fiction here, because I do read a LOT of articles. I'm interested in self improvement, and in improving the lives of others, so I read a lot of things to do with that. I guess we'll come back to this section too.

I am in the process of uploading my travel journals to a blog. It's going to be a mixture of a bit of storytelling with some info about destinations, aimed at helping out fellow travellers while providing them with some light-hearted entertainment. So I'd appreciate any help with the technological side of it. In terms of the skills that come from writing, well I can write things for you or proofread and edit. I can also offer you some great pearls of wisdom. About the places I've been to, or just about life in general. Failing that, I have MANY stories to share so I will make you laugh at the very least.

I'll add to this box as I think of new things.

Ce que j'aimerais partager avec mes hôtes

Wait, isn't this the same as the box above?

Sorry I can't currently host, because I have nowhere to host you. But this is just the start of my Couchsurfing journey so hopefully in the future I will be able to more than repay the community.
In fact, I read recently about a family who aren't currently able to travel with their kids, so they host Couchsurfers in their home so that the kids can meet different people and learn about new cultures. Future parenting goals!

Ps: As I'm new to this I don't have too many references yet, so I have uploaded a screenshot of a reference from AirBnB in my photos :)

Pays que j'ai visités

Albania, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cambodia, Canada, China, Croatia, Czech Republic, England, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Hungary, India, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Kosovo, Laos, Macao, Malaysia, Malta, Monaco, Montenegro, Myanmar, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Portugal, Scotland, Singapore, Slovenia, South Korea, Spain, Sri Lanka, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, United Kingdom, United States, Viet Nam, Wales

Pays dans lesquels j'ai vécu

England, France, India, Netherlands, Taiwan, Thailand, United Kingdom